National Night Out
On August 7th
, 2018, MADD SC attended National Night Out with the Mount Pleasant Police Department. National Night Out is a campaign that promotes healthy community partnerships with local law enforcement. Law enforcement meet with community members with the goal of making neighborhoods a safer place for the families living there. In addition, it provides a great opportunity to bring police and neighbors together under positive circumstances.
MADD Victim Services Specialist, Kelly Stafford, distributed information about MADD Victim Services, our underage drinking programs, and how to volunteer with our Court Monitoring Program at the event. Mount Pleasant Police Traffic Enforcement and MADD shared a table at the event. Traffic Officers exhibited their Fatal Vision Goggles. These googles demonstrate various levels of intoxication. Officers set up a scenario that resembled a Field Sobriety Test. Goggle wearers were asked to walk a straight line and perform some balancing maneuvers. Watching the community realize what intoxicated drivers see while driving, was encouraging. Many left the demonstration with comments like “wow, I didn’t realize how 2 glasses of wine could affect you.”
There was a good community turnout for the event. The Mount Pleasant Police Department provided food, drinks, and music. They also performed K-9 demonstrations and the SWAT Team exhibited their equipment. This event is important for the department and for the community. By having MADD participate in events like this, it gives us a chance to teach the community about our programs and services.